True. Nevertheless, Paramount does not seem to have grown their Star Trek movie-going audience much in the intervening three decades, whatever way you want to slice it. I think Abrams was smart to jump ship.

Is he really jumping ship (has it been stated he won't direct?) though if it's his company that is making the third installment and he's a producer?

If he left to direct some no-name film, I'd agree that he may think the franchise doesn't have room for much growth. But he's leaving to direct something that he loves.

Well, currently the rumors are Star Wars VII is unofficially slated for May or December 2015. And Paramount wants Star Trek 3 out for the 50th Anniversary in 2016, so I don't see how he could possibly direct both. Any way you wish to characterize it, the fact is he left Star Trek for Star Wars which stands to make far more money than the next Star Trek film.

__________________"Shake off all the fears & servile prejudices, under which weak minds are servilely crouched. Fix reason firmly in her seat, and call to her tribunal every fact, every opinion." -Thomas Jefferson